Means for indicating and cementing off leaks in well casings



invention eating and eementin off leaks in well vcasings,.. and an important o Aject of the invention is below the le The accompanying drawings illustrate embodiments o my invention and referring thereto:

u Figfl is a. partly'sectional'elevation bf lthe device constituting the invention.

Fig. 2 is asection on line 2-,2 in Figa 1.

Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic verticalsection of a well casing showing the applica-tion of the invention in connection therewith.

Fig. 4 is a. vertical'section of'a, modified 'form of the invention.

My invention comprises a device secured to or adapted to be secured to the .lower end of asti-ing oftubingforinsertion into a. well casngtsaid device consists ofa tubular body .1 provided with packing means at its upper and lower ends and having suitable means for it to the tubing indicated at 2 for supporting the same, said tubular bodv having one or more perforations indicated at 3, for the purpose hereinafter set forth.

The. packing means at the upper and lower portions of the. tubular body 1 may b'eof similar construction, each comprising two. cups 5 and 6 mounted or secured between anges 7, 8 and 9, screwing on the tubular body 1 so as to support said cups in position;

The cups 5 and 6 may consist of 'suitable flexible 'wear-resistant materia-1,5!1ch as leather, each cup ha-ving a ila-nge 11 extending 'between the clamping rings 7 and 8 or 9 and 10 as the case may be, the cup-5 being bent from said flange ortion 11, away from the 'central portion o body 1 and the cup 6 being. bent away'frorn the flange llzin the direction towardthe-central portion of the body of water sothat when these cups engage the wallsof the casing, the pressure of the .liquid i n 5 jabovethe upper-cup 5 or below the lower cup nur .Hl er Les relates to. means' 'for i.ndi

make Ta uid 'tight joint with the casi 5 will force .said .cups lontvvai-.dly so as to andthe pressure of fluid between-thetwo inner cups 6 will forfoe'said cups outwardly so as to make a; fluid tight jo.nt .with thefs casing. The tube 2 may be secured to the upper end"of.body 1, iurexam le,- by screw ling in a plug orvhead lwhic screws' into the upper end of said body 1, said tube 2 being coi-inec-ted by con ling or sleeve`15 to 6.0

. the lowermost section o the string of ubing indicated at 13 for. supporting the vice. Said tube-Zmay extenddown through'the tubular body land may be provided witl:

one or more perforations indicated stil?, 65' prefuerably oppositeth'e perforatiens afore An upwardly openingcheckva-lve indicat-y ed at 18 is rovided at the loiver end of the tubular bo y l and may, for example, be 7 mounted in a downward extension of Itube 2, said mbe in um @Se extending through the tubular body 1 and screwing at its lower end through a bushing 19 which screws into the body 1 and the cage 20 .being provided, 75 screwing into the lower end -of the tube 13 and formed with a seat 21 for the ball check vvalve 18.' A spring 22 mounted insaid'cage 9.0 presses on the check valve 18 so as to tend to hold the same in closed pos-itipn but 'to 8 openup under a predetermined presure eorresponding say 'to two hundred feet of water. I

In order-to obviate undue pressure onthe packing. means aforesaid when the device is 351 submerged to. great depth, a bypass'oonsisting for exainple of one or. more tubes 24: extending vertically through the tubular body 1 and opening at the lower end thereof into the space within tbe-well tubing below the Y body 1 and at the. upper ends info the -spao- -1 inginth-e well casing above'the body 1.

The operation of my. invention-is primarily' upon the established fact that the water level in. a. -well at a given' time can be readily ldetermined and generally remains substantially Constant for a. sufcient time'to f enable the'operation o my invention as here 4inater set forth. This water level may be determined, .for example, by lowering a float im 'Afa described, the cementing operation can be carriedout by rneansof the'same device, suitable cementmg materlalbeing delivered i i 'throughhe supporting pipe 2 and liowi'ng through the apertures 17 and 3 soas to enter y the space 4between the upper and'l'ower pack-l ingl means on the device 1, and then forced l through the' perforation. or leak in the ca s- Ving which vis at thattime opposite said' space.- In order to minimizejthe amount of cement 1requiredl and .particularly lo minimize: the amount lof 'cement accugin to assout as so'onas it enters the device mulating within the device I prefer to make the openings 17 and 3v which are provided onl 'at' the lower end portion of the tubular body 1 and adjacent Y the lower packing means so-that thecementing material will be and wi l 'not accumulate unnecessaril vthere-- in, the Space above the leak and be ow the upper packing means and between the tubul'ir body I and the casing being occupied with -the cementing materialfpassi'ng incompressible liquid so as to prevent any of uplwardl w into said space above the leak, and en su ficient cementing material-has been supplied Aprovi-ded only in the lower portion of saidin this manner it may be followed up by mud so as to eject all or substantially all of the cementing material from the interior-of the device. Vfit-h such ano eration, the device be-- ing left substantially ree ofcement material,

it is comparatively easy to remove the device from the casing after -the'cement has set. I claim:- v 1.A A device for indicatingI and/or cement interior of said tubular body, said tubular body having perforation. means between said packing means, for establishing cornmunication between the interior of said tubular body 45 and the space between the upper and lower packing means, said perforation means being tubular body and adjacent the lower packing nzeans. A 2. A device for indicating and cement-mg leaks in well casings, for the purposes set forth, comprising a 'tubular body having low the 4tubular body, andan inner packing A i packing means at its upper and lower por f 'I tions, 'each packing means comprising a! `outer packing cup adapted to expand from pressure applied in the space .above and be cup adapted to expand'underpressure ap plied between-saidpackingmeans, and a tubular -supportingmeans for the said tubular body communicating with the interior of said tubular body, 'said tubular body havmgpen foration, means 'between said-packing meansfr f for establishing communication between the interior of said .tubular body and the space -the space within the casing below saidtubu.-

.ing of the check 'valve on a predetermine exi? -cess .of pressure below the tubular vbody as `and compri'sin addition an upwardly check valve, said tubular body being provided jvalves and the space intermediate the two upper check valve being of such 'strength'that between the 4upper :and lower packing means, "i u; "i"

- and a cheek valve et' the' lower 'portion of said 1.7.

tubular body controlling com mu'nicatio'n be# v tween the interior of saidtubuiar body and.

lar body, and. a spring mea-:intending to hold said check va-live closed, but permitting o! ny @mee-fed with the .pl are within-the tuba-- larbody'. A j

3. A construction as set forth in claim 2 openl check vare below` said ii'rst named ro with an opening Aestablishin 'communication g between the space inte-tine inte said check* packin-g cups at. the lower end ofthe tubular )ody and a spring means to hold said lower check valve closed, said spring means-for the the upper check valve will open only at a.- 't 1:' pressure' .in excess of that which 'suilices to open the lower check valve. 4.. The method of Vcementing o leaks in well casings, which consists inlowering int-o the well, packing means separating the space wit-hin a iortion of the well casing including the' leak imm the spaceswthin the well cas-- ing aboveland below the saine, thel portion so separated-extendingfrom the. bottom of than 'Y leak to a considerable distance above the leak,= causin said space to become filled with liq uid an Athen forcing cementing'material into 'the lower portion of said space so as to cement -x the leak while preventin the c'ementing rna-v terielrom occupying lie spaceabove the v, leak, by reason of the occupation of said'space 1 hy incompressible liquid, and then withdiraw- 105 4 ing the packing means, .with vany cemcnting; inaterial therein contained, from the well casmg n I Y 5. The method as set lfoi-'th in claim, and comprising in addition the step of forcing ,110 mudl into the lower portion of the space between said packing meansto follow up the cement. v. -1 In testimony whereof I have hereunto subjscribed myl name this 13th day of May, 1929. v PAUL H. GRANGER. 

